Anywhere's Better Than Here (30 page)

‘‘Oh,'' he said, his shoulders slumping slightly.

‘‘Oh?'' shouted Laurie, ‘‘Oh? We're fucked and all you can do is say oh!''

Gerry glanced back at her quickly, a flick of irritation crossing his face and then over her head to Jamie. ‘‘Did you call him?''

Laurie turned back to Jamie who nodded confidently. She looked out at the driveway but Gerry was obscuring her view.

‘‘You didn't need to phone him as well.''

‘‘Jesus Christ,'' she muttered, elbowing Gerry out of the way. ‘‘Call who? What's going on here?''

Climbing out of the Ford Fiesta was Ed's mum. Laurie stood dumbly as Sandy brushed herself down and glanced around at the scrawny garden and the paint-peeled cottage.

‘‘Laurie,'' she said nodding politely.

Ed had told her whatever he knew, she could tell by the look of grim satisfaction on her face. There was nothing worse than that told-you-so expression. She'd never seen it before on Sandy. It brought her features into stronger focus, perhaps due to her mouth being drawn into an almost straight line.

If she was here then so must Ed, she thought, looking into the body of the car where of course, joy of joys, Ed was reaching into the back seat for something. He looked up at Laurie then reached for the door and climbed out. She stood and watched him as he came around the car and held out a packet of biscuits.

‘‘Hob Nobs? Are you joking?''

‘‘Put the kettle on Laurie and let's get this all sorted out,'' said Gerry.

Laurie looked at Ed's mum and shook her head.

‘‘No.''

‘‘Laurie, don't be difficult,'' said Gerry, squeezing her arm. ‘‘Let's be adults here.''

‘‘Don't be difficult!'' She was completely wrong-footed here. ‘‘Let's be adults?'' She stood between Gerry and Ed, not sure who she wanted to punch more. ‘‘Can somebody please just explain what's going on here?'' She made an effort to bring her voice under control.

‘‘I phoned Ed,'' said Jamie.

‘‘But why?'' asked Laurie. ‘‘And how? There's no phone?''

Jamie pulled a tiny mobile out of his pocket and waved it at Laurie.

‘‘Oh. Of course.'' What an idiot she was. ‘‘What's going on here?'' She felt herself going red. ‘‘I thought you couldn't go back because of the police and your parents and everything?''

‘‘The police?'' said Gerry.

‘‘Yeah, well, you know.'' She nodded towards Ed and made a
keep quiet
face at Gerry.

‘‘I never said anything about the police,'' Ed said.

‘‘You said there'd been an accident.'' She took a step towards Jamie. ‘‘That someone had died,'' Laurie said.

The boy shrugged.

‘‘Look,'' said Ed, stepping forward. ‘‘We need to sort things out here.'' He looked at Jamie and then back at Laurie. ‘‘What's going on? I've got a duty of care here and until …''

‘‘What gives you the authority?'' interrupted Laurie.

‘‘Because I'm in loco parentis,'' he said patiently.

‘‘No you aren't – you aren't even a qualified play worker or whatever it is you're doing at college.'' She couldn't seem to stop herself sounding like a fishwife.

Ed went on, ‘‘and I'll be in that position until we can locate his parents or caregivers.''

‘‘Parents? Caregivers?'' Laurie tutted. ‘‘Gee whiz, you've really got it together now, haven't you?''

‘‘Well, actually,'' said Gerry.

But before he could finish speaking the sound of another car came crunching up the drive way. They all turned in the car's direction.

‘‘Now what?'' asked Laurie.

They all stood and stared at the Volvo Estate. There was an older woman behind the steering wheel and a younger woman sat glaring out at them from the passenger seat.

‘‘Oh fuck,'' said Jamie.

‘‘Fuck indeed,'' said Gerry.

Laurie's eyes flicked between Gerry and the boy and back to Gerry again.

Of course.

There'd been some half formed thought bobbing about at the edge of her brain, but she hadn't paid it any attention.

Jesus Christ.

How bloody melodramatic. She was such an unbelievable fuckwit.

The younger woman ran her hands over her hair and leaned back in the seat with her eyes closed. She appeared to be counting. Gerry moved over to the driver's door and nodded. The older woman stared up at him. Gerry opened the door for her and she stepped out and then clutched him to her, starting to cry.

Everyone shuffled and shifted, unable to stop staring at Gerry and the woman. Then the passenger car door slammed and the younger woman stood and coughed once. Gerry and older woman stepped apart.

The older woman looked at the younger woman and then back at Gerry.

‘‘Jenny.'' Gerry couldn't take his eyes from the younger woman's face.

Jenny laughed harshly. She was so like Jamie, it was startling – the same dark eyes and sharp chin; the same high forehead and thin lips. But it was the laugh that brought the similarity into sharp focus. ‘‘Well this is a lovely little get together.''

Gerry nodded with a look of sad resignation.

The older woman frowned at Jamie, who looked down at his feet, shame-faced.

‘‘What were you thinking? You had us worried half to death.'' She shook her head, but her face was full of concern. ‘‘There are easier ways, you know.''

He muttered sorry, still not looking up.

Jenny tutted. ‘‘Get your stuff together. We'll talk on the way home.''

Jamie's head whipped up to look at Gerry who was staring at this Jenny character.

‘‘But Mum!'' Now he sounded like a child.

‘‘But nothing. I said we'd talk in the car. Get going!'' She pointed up the stairs. Jamie still didn't move. ‘‘Now!'' Jenny didn't shout, but her tone was firm and she was clearly no push over.

Gerry couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from Jenny. Jenny was very deliberately not looking at Gerry.

Finally Jamie made a little huffy sound and thumped up the stairs. They stood and listened as Jamie slammed his door shut, opened it again and slammed it shut harder.

‘‘Fucking hell,'' thought Laurie, but she must have said it aloud, because they all turned and looked at her.

‘‘You must be Laurie,'' said the older woman. ‘‘I'm Margaret, Gerry's mother.''

She reached out a hand to shake. Her hand was warm and smooth and she gave Laurie's hand a reassuring squeeze.

‘‘Please excuse my son's lack of manners.'' She turned to the assembled company. ‘‘I expect it's the circumstances.'' She smiled at Ed and his mother. ‘‘Are you the man from the Community Centre?''

Ed nodded. ‘‘Yes. Ed MacDonald.''

‘‘I'm so sorry about all the trouble my grandson has caused you. We will, of course, make sure there are no further problems.''

‘‘Hello,'' said Ed's mum. ‘‘I'm Edward's mother, Sandy.''

‘‘Lovely. How nice to meet you.'' The two older women shook hands. This was too weird and polite for Laurie.

‘‘Are these for us?'' Gerry's mother asked Ed, pointing at the Hob Nobs. ‘‘Come on then, let's have some tea. I brought milk.''

Tea? Laurie felt she needed something a lot stronger than tea. Where was Gerry's hip flask when she actually needed it?

Margaret walked into the house and they had no choice but to follow her in.

Laurie turned to look back at Gerry and Jenny. Gerry stepped forward and, without glancing at Laurie, gently shut the front door.

Margaret led the way into the living room but stopped short when she saw Laurie's attempt at decorations with the old artificial Christmas tree and the ornaments. She reached out and ran her fingers over the mountain star. She smiled.

‘‘I hope you don't mind,'' said Laurie. ‘‘Gerry said it would be okay.''

Gerry's mother turned and looked at Laurie, studying her face. ‘‘I don't mind at all.'' She tapped a finger on the top few snowflakes. ‘‘I'm surprised Gerry remembered about them.''

‘‘They're very pretty,'' said Laurie, sounding to herself like a suck up, but she meant it.

‘‘They are, aren't they?'' said Ed's mum, stepping forward and looking intently at the star. ‘‘I've never seen anything like them.''

‘‘Nonsense,'' said Margaret. ‘‘They're just silly decorations.'' She blushed and shrugged. ‘‘Now let's get organised,'' she said, changing her tone to that of professional hostess. ‘‘Why don't you sit down,'' she indicated the sofa. ‘‘Laurie, could you come and help me?''

Ordinarily, being bossed around like this would have gotten Laurie's back up, but there was something about Margaret that she liked. She followed Gerry's mother out of the room, glancing back briefly at Ed and his mum who were standing looking at the scrappy Christmas tree as if they were at an art gallery.

Once they entered the kitchen, Laurie was at a loss as to what to do to help. Margaret quickly assembled the cups and saucers, filled the kettle and laid the biscuits out. Clearly she had done a lot of entertaining. Laurie imagined there were a lot of Ladies Circle and PTA meetings that she'd organised in her time. She looked like Laurie's idea of a doctor's wife. Her hair was a nice clean silvery grey, cut into a neat little bob that swung pleasingly about her oval face. She didn't look much like Gerry except for around the eyes which were similarly twinkly. She did appear to be quite tightly-wound, but that was probably down to worry.

‘‘This is a strange situation, isn't it?'' she said suddenly to Laurie. ‘‘Not the best of circumstances to meet your boyfriend's mother. Or his child, for that matter.''

Laurie wasn't sure where to begin. She looked out of the window at the trees she'd been sleeping under all but ten minutes before. She wished she'd had the good sense never to have talked to Gerry in the first place. She should have just broken up with Ed and been single for a while, advertised for flat mates, saved up and gone to Australia like any other directionless twenty-something would have done. What was she thinking of getting together with a weird near forty-year-old with family issues?

She sighed.

‘‘I don't think you could describe Gerry as my boyfriend, really.'' She unscrewed and re-screwed the lid of the sugar canister. ‘‘And he didn't say anything about being Jamie's father,'' she said out of the window. Her face burned with the shame of being such a fool.

‘‘Gerry didn't say what?'' Margaret frowned at her.

‘‘Gerry didn't say that Jamie was his child.'' She was such an idiot. It was so obvious now that was what was going on. ‘‘He didn't say anything to me or Jamie.''

‘‘Jamie?''

‘‘Well, Jamie didn't know.'' She sighed. ‘‘It must have been a shock for him.''

Margaret looked briefly at Laurie and then turned back to the tea tray.

‘‘He knew that Gerry was his father.'' She didn't look at Laurie. ‘‘Unfortunately, it seems he contrived this whole ridiculous situation. And he isn't called Jamie,'' she turned to Laurie, wincing as she spoke, ‘‘he's called Paul.''

Laurie felt as if she'd been slapped. She considered just grabbing her stuff and going.

‘‘So basically, everyone knew but me?'' Her eyes teared up. She had been so dim-witted, she could hardly believe it.

Margaret raised a hand to touch Laurie's arm in comfort, but the look on Laurie's face stopped her short.

‘‘I'm sorry.'' She stood for a moment, thinking. ‘‘From the brief conversation I had with Gerry on the phone, I don't think he actually knew until this morning.'' She took a step closer to Laurie. ‘‘He took Paul's phone and found our number on it. I think he was planning on phoning Paul's mother, but then he realised …''

‘‘I see,'' said Laurie, leaning against the counter. ‘‘Why didn't he tell me?'' She sounded pathetic. She didn't know why, but she wanted very badly not to give Margaret the impression that she was as much of a monumental tit as she was appearing.

This time Margaret did place her hand gently on Laurie's arm. ‘‘I didn't speak to him for long and you know what Gerry's like – not, shall we say, tremendously communicative.'' She smiled at Laurie in an attempt at we're-in-this-together humour.

Laurie didn't smile. ‘‘So …'' She rubbed at her temples, ‘‘Let's see if I've got this straight.'' She had a headache coming on. ‘‘Jamie, sorry, Paul, knew all about Gerry and this whole,'' she waved her arm around herself, ‘‘mess was down to him? And Gerry realised this morning that Jamie, sorry, Paul,'' she sighed, ‘‘was his never-seen son. Then Gerry phoned you and told you to come here. Jamie, Paul, meanwhile phoned Ed?'' She tried to laugh bitterly, but just sounded pathetic. God, all that ‘‘Paul's dead'' rubbish. This was like a stupid afternoon play.

‘‘For fuck's sake!'' Laurie said, sitting down heavily at the table. ‘‘You couldn't make this up. I was just trying to help Gerry and Jamie! I don't need this hassle!'' She started to cry. She didn't care any more about making a show in front of this woman.

Margaret hovered over her. ‘‘I'm so sorry Laurie. Gerry said things got …'' she took a deep breath, ‘‘away from him.''

Laurie shook her head and looked up at Margaret. ‘‘Things got away from Gerry quite a while ago.''

‘‘I know,'' said Margaret. ‘‘But he won't let us help him.'' Now the older woman's eyes filled up. God, they were great criers, you had to hand that to Gerry's nearest and dearest.